Integrating a communication platform into a third-party platform

ABSTRACT

Integration of a group-based communication platform into a third-party application is described. In an example, an affordance associated with the group-based communication platform can be presented via a user interface of the third-party application. Based at least in part on detecting an input associated with the affordance, at least the message can be retrieved from the group-based communication platform. The message can be presented via the user interface of the third-party application, wherein one or more messages associated with the group-based communication platform, including the message, are presented via the user interface of the third-party application.

PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of, and claims priority to, U.S.patent application Ser. No. 17/111,408, filed on Dec. 3, 2020, entitled“INTEGRATING A THIRD-PARTY PLATFORM INTO A COMMUNICATION PLATFORM”,which is fully incorporated by reference herein by its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

A communication platform can leverage a network-based computing systemto enable users to exchange data. In an example, users of thecommunication platform can communicate with other users viacommunication channels (or “channels”). A communication channel, orother virtual space, can be a data route used for exchanging databetween and among systems and devices associated with the communicationplatform. For example, a communication channel may be establishedbetween and among various user computing devices, allowing the usercomputing devices to communicate and share data between and among eachother over one or more networks. That is, in some examples, thecommunication platform can be a channel-based platform and/or hub forfacilitating communication between and among users. In some examples,data associated with a communication channel can be presented via a userinterface. In some examples, the user interface can present a data feedindicating messages posted to and/or actions taken with respect to aparticular communication channel. In existing techniques, to accessobjects associated with, but external to, the communication platform, auser is required to leave the communication platform. As such, existingtechniques require multiple interactions between the user and a usercomputing device and are therefore, inefficient.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanyingfigures. In the figures, the left-most digit of a reference numberidentifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. Theuse of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similaror identical components or features. The figures are not drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment for performing techniquesdescribed herein.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example user interface presented via acommunication platform, as described herein.

FIG. 2B illustrates another example user interface presented via acommunication platform, as described herein.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a user interface, wherein a third-partyobject is presented within the user interface.

FIG. 4 illustrates another example of a user interface, wherein asection presenting a third-party object has been resized via a resizingmechanism.

FIG. 5 illustrates another example of a user interface, wherein multiplethird-party objects are presented within the user interface.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a user interface presented via athird-party platform.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a user interface presented via athird-party platform, wherein functionality associated with acommunication platform is integrated into the third-party platform.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example process for presenting a third-partyobject via a user interface associated with a communication platform, asdescribed herein.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example process for annotating a user interface toenable access to third-party object(s) associated with the userinterface, as described herein.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example process for causing a group-basedcommunication user interface to be presented via a third-party platform,wherein functionality associated with a communication platform isintegrated into the third-party platform, as described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Integrating object(s) associated with third-party platform(s) (e.g.,“third-party object(s)”) into a communication platform is described. Acommunication platform, which, in some examples can be a group-basedcommunication platform, a channel-based communication platform, apermission-based communication platform, channel-based messagingplatform, and/or any other platform for facilitating communicationbetween and among users, can enable users to access third-party objectsfrom within the communication platform. That is, in at least oneexample, a third-party object can be integrated in the communicationplatform such that the third-party object can be accessed from withinthe communication platform. In at least one example, a user can requestto access a third-party object from a user interface associated with thecommunication platform. The third-party object can be retrieved from thethird-party platform and presented via the user interface, such that theuser can view, edit, or otherwise interact with the third-party objectvia the user interface. That is, in an example, the user interface canbe partitioned into two or more sections, wherein a first section canpresent data (e.g., message(s), indication(s) of interactions, etc.)associated with the communication platform and a second section canpresent the third-party object. In at least one example, the firstsection and second section can be presented at a same time and each canbe independently interactable. As such, a user can interact with thecommunication platform and the third-party object without leaving thecommunication platform. That is, the user can open, view, and/or editthe third-party object within the context of the communication platform.

In some examples, functionality associated with the communicationplatform can be integrated into third-party platforms. For example, athird-party platform can present an actuation mechanism, or any otherinteraction mechanism, that can enable such functionality (associatedwith the communication platform) to be presented via the third-partyplatform. In some examples, based at least in part on detecting an inputassociated with the actuation mechanism, a user interface presented viathe third-party platform can be partitioned into two or more sections,wherein a first section can present data associated with the third-partyplatform (e.g., a third-party object) and a second section can present agroup-based communication user interface associated with thecommunication platform (and/or other data associated with thecommunication platform). In at least one example, the first section andsecond section can be presented at a same time and each can beseparately interactable. As such, a user can interact with thecommunication platform without leaving the third-party platform. Thatis, the user can communicate on the communication platform within thecontext of the third-party platform.

Examples described herein are directed to integrating third-partyobjects, associated with third-party platforms, into a communicationplatform and/or integrating functionality associated with thecommunication platform into third-party platforms. In some examples, oneor more instances of an application associated with the communicationplatform can be integrated in the communication platform and/or athird-party platform. In some examples, more than one third-party objectcan be integrated in the communication platform such that multiple,different objects, associated with the same or different third-partyplatforms can be opened, viewed, and/or edited via a user interface ofthe communication platform.

As described above, in existing techniques, for a user to access athird-party object, the user is required to leave the communicationplatform to open, view, and/or edit the object. This can require theuser to toggle between multiple, different user interfaces,applications, platforms, and/or the like. Existing techniques aretherefore inefficient and can be frustrating to users. Techniquesdescribed herein enable the integration of the communication platformwith a third-party platform such that a user using the communicationplatform can open, view, and/or edit third-party objects without leavingthe communication platform and/or a user using a third-party platformcan communicate via the communication platform without leaving thethird-party platform. As such, techniques described herein provide animprovement to existing systems by offering improved user interfaces.That is, by enabling the integration of third-party objects with acommunication platform and/or a communication platform with athird-party platform, techniques described herein streamline userinteraction with user interfaces. Furthermore, by reducing the number ofwindows or similar components required to access multiple objects,techniques described herein reduce processing and/or computingresources, thereby offering improvements to existing techniques.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment 100 for performing techniquesdescribed herein. In at least one example, the example environment 100can include one or more server computing devices (or “server(s)”) 102.In at least one example, the server(s) 102 can include one or moreservers or other types of computing devices that can be embodied in anynumber of ways. For example, in the case of a server, the functionalcomponents and data can be implemented on a single server, a cluster ofservers, a server farm or data center, a cloud-hosted computing service,a cloud-hosted storage service, and so forth, although other computerarchitectures can additionally or alternatively be used.

In at least one example, the server(s) 102 can be associated with acommunication platform that can leverage a network-based computingsystem to enable users of the communication platform to exchange data.In at least one example, the communication platform can be “group-based”such that the platform, and associated systems, communication channels,messages, and/or virtual spaces, have security (that can be defined bypermissions) to limit access to defined groups of users. In someexamples, such groups of users can be defined by identifiers, which canbe associated with common access credentials, domains, or the like. Insome examples, the communication platform can be a hub, offering asecure and private virtual space to enable users to chat, meet, call,collaborate, transfer files or other data, message, or otherwisecommunicate between or among each other.

In some examples, each group can be associated with an organization,which can be associated with an organization identifier. Usersassociated with the organization identifier can chat, meet, call,collaborate, transfer files or other data, message, or otherwisecommunicate between or among each other in a secure and private virtualspace available via the communication platform. In some examples, eachgroup can be associated with a workspace, associated with a workspaceidentifier. Users associated with the workspace identifier can chat,meet, call, collaborate, transfer files or other data, message, orotherwise communicate between or among each other in a secure andprivate virtual space available via the communication platform. In someexamples, a group can be associated with multiple organizations and/orworkspaces. In some examples, an organization can be associated withmultiple workspaces.

In at least one example, the server(s) 102 can communicate with a usercomputing device 104 via one or more network(s) 106. That is, theserver(s) 102 and the user computing device 104 can transmit, receive,and/or store data (e.g., content, information, or the like) using thenetwork(s) 106, as described herein. The user computing device 104 canbe any suitable type of computing device, e.g., portable, semi-portable,semi-stationary, or stationary. Some examples of the user computingdevice 104 can include a tablet computing device, a smart phone, amobile communication device, a laptop, a netbook, a desktop computingdevice, a terminal computing device, a wearable computing device, anaugmented reality device, an Internet of Things (IOT) device, or anyother computing device capable of sending communications and performingthe functions according to the techniques described herein. While asingle user computing device 104 is shown, in practice, the exampleenvironment 100 can include multiple (e.g., tens of, hundreds of,thousands of, millions of) user computing devices. In at least oneexample, user computing devices, such as the user computing device 104,can be operable by users to, among other things, access communicationservices via the communication platform. A user can be an individual, agroup of individuals, an employer, an enterprise, an organization, orthe like. In some examples, users can be associated with designatedroles (e.g., administrator, team leader, etc.) and/or types (e.g.,verified, etc.).

The network(s) 106 can include, but are not limited to, any type ofnetwork known in the art, such as a local area network or a wide areanetwork, the Internet, a wireless network, a cellular network, a localwireless network, Wi-Fi and/or close-range wireless communications,Bluetooth®, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Near Field Communication (NFC),a wired network, or any other such network, or any combination thereof.Components used for such communications can depend at least in part uponthe type of network, the environment selected, or both. Protocols forcommunicating over such network(s) 106 are well known and are notdiscussed herein in detail.

In at least one example, the server(s) 102 can include one or moreprocessors 108, computer-readable media 110, one or more communicationinterfaces 112, and input/output devices 114.

In at least one example, each processor of the processor(s) 108 can be asingle processing unit or multiple processing units, and can includesingle or multiple computing units or multiple processing cores. Theprocessor(s) 108 can be implemented as one or more microprocessors,microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, centralprocessing units (CPUs), graphics processing units (GPUs), statemachines, logic circuitries, and/or any devices that manipulate signalsbased on operational instructions. For example, the processor(s) 108 canbe one or more hardware processors and/or logic circuits of any suitabletype specifically programmed or configured to execute the algorithms andprocesses described herein. The processor(s) 108 can be configured tofetch and execute computer-readable instructions stored in thecomputer-readable media, which can program the processor(s) to performthe functions described herein.

The computer-readable media 110 can include volatile, nonvolatile,removable, and/or non-removable memory or other media implemented in anytype of technology for storage of data, such as computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Suchcomputer-readable media 110 can include, but is not limited to, RAM,ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, optical storage,solid state storage, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage, RAID storagesystems, storage arrays, network attached storage, storage areanetworks, cloud storage, or any other medium that can be used to storethe desired data and that can be accessed by a computing device.Depending on the configuration of the server(s) 102, thecomputer-readable media 110 can be a type of computer-readable storagemedia and/or can be a tangible non-transitory media to the extent thatwhen mentioned, non-transitory computer-readable media exclude mediasuch as energy, carrier signals, electromagnetic waves, and signals perse.

The computer-readable media 110 can be used to store any number offunctional components that are executable by the processor(s) 108. Inmany implementations, these functional components comprise instructionsor programs that are executable by the processor(s) 108 and that, whenexecuted, specifically configure the processor(s) 108 to perform theactions attributed above to the server(s) 102. Functional componentsstored in the computer-readable media can optionally include anintegration management component 116, a channel management component118, a direct message management component 119, an operating system 120,and a datastore 122.

In at least one example, the integration management component 116 canmanage integration of third-party platforms with the communicationplatform and/or the communication platform with third-party platforms. Athird-party platform, which can be associated with the third-partyserver(s) 123, can be external to the communication platform and canoffer additional or alternative services than those offered by thecommunication platform. That is, the communication platform can be a“first-party platform” and the third-party platform can be external tothe first-party platform, the communication platform. In an example,services of a third-party platform can be accessed via a third-partyapplication, a web browser, or the like. In at least one example, athird-party platform can host, store, manage, or otherwise own one ormore objects. An object can include a text document, an image, a video,or any other file or data item. An object created by a third-partyplatform can be a “third-party object” and can be hosted, stored,managed, or otherwise owned by the third-party platform.

In some examples, the integration management component 116 canfacilitate the integration of the third-party platform into thecommunication platform. In some examples, a third-party platform can beintegrated into a web browser experience associated with thecommunication platform. In some examples, a third-party platform can beintegrated into a native application associated with the communicationplatform.

In some examples, a third-party platform can be integrated into thecommunication platform via a small software program (e.g., built on webtechnologies such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), JavaScript,Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), etc.) that can be used to customize a webbrowsing experience associated with the communication platform. In atleast one example, such a small software program can be called anextension. In at least one example, an extension can be used to tailor(web) browser functionality and behavior to needs or preferences of aplatform (e.g., the communication platform, a third-party platform,etc.). In some examples, a developer can install such an extension intothe communication platform. In at least one example, the extension cancause a frame, such as an iframe, to be loaded within a web browserwithin which the communication platform is accessible (e.g., in responseto detecting input associated with an actuation mechanism with which athird-party object is associated and/or receiving a request for athird-party object). In some examples, the frame can access contentassociated with the third-party platform and write content associatedtherewith into the frame. As such, a requested third-party object can bepresented via the frame within a user interface of the communicationplatform (e.g., presented via a web browser).

In some examples, a third-party platform can be integrated into thecommunication platform by embedding an embeddable browser (e.g., awebview) into a native application associated with the communicationplatform. In such examples, the native application can use theembeddable browser to display web content inline in the nativeapplication. That is, in such examples, the native application can havea browser engine embedded therein that can programmatically load content(e.g., third-party object(s)) in a user interface, as described herein.In some examples, such content can be loaded into a frame, such as aniframe. As such, a requested third-party object can be presented via theframe within a user interface of the communication platform (e.g.,presented via the native application).

In some examples, the integration management component 116 canfacilitate integration of functionality associated with thecommunication platform into third-party platforms. In some examples, thecommunication platform can be integrated into a web browser experienceassociated with a third-party platform. In some examples, thecommunication platform can be integrated into a native applicationassociated with the third-party platform.

In some examples, the communication platform can be integrated into athird-party platform via a small software program (e.g., an extension),as described above. In some examples, a developer (associated with athird-party platform) can install such an extension into the third-partyplatform. In at least one example, the extension can cause a frame, suchas an iframe, to be loaded within a web browser within which thethird-party platform is accessible. In some examples, the frame canaccess content associated with the communication platform and writecontent associated therewith into the frame. In some examples, thecommunication platform can be associated with security restrictions thatlimit the ability for the communication platform to be framed into anexternal website (e.g., a website associated with a different domain,for example). As such, in some examples, when the frame associated withthe communication platform is requested, the extension can be configuredto redirect to the communication platform, which can rewrite contentassociated with the communication platform and the third-party platformwithin two frames. This can provide an experience as though the user isoperating within the third-party platform, but, due to the securityrestrictions, can be hosted by the communication platform.

In some examples, the communication platform can be integrated into thethird-party platform by embedding an embeddable browser (e.g., awebview) into a native application associated with the third-partyplatform. In such examples, the native application can use theembeddable browser to display web content. That is, in such examples,the native application can have a browser engine embedded therein thatcan programmatically load content (e.g., third-party object(s)) in auser interface, as described herein. In some examples, such content canbe loaded into a frame, such as an iframe.

In some examples, the frame associated with the third-party platformcontent can be one of multiple frames associated with a user interfaceassociated with the communication platform (e.g., presented via a webbrowser or native application). For example, a first frame can be usedto present data associated with the communication platform and a secondframe can be used to present data associated with a third-partyplatform. In such examples, the first frame can point to thecommunication platform and the second frame can point to an externaldocument, but both frames can be presented within a same user interfaceof the communication platform. As described herein, data associated withboth frames can be independently interactable. In some examples, theextension can be configured to create a bidirectional connection toenable communication between the frames.

In at least one example, based at least in part on integrating thethird-party platform with the communication platform, references toobjects associated with the third-party platform (e.g., a “third-partyobject”) can be annotated with an actuation mechanism. For the purposeof this discussion, an “actuation mechanism” can be any mechanism withwhich an interaction causes an operation to be performed. That is, anactuation mechanism can be an interaction mechanism that causes anoperation to be performed. In some examples, the integration managementcomponent 116 can analyze data associated with a user interface of thecommunication platform to identify references to third-party objects.The integration management component 116 can cause an actuationmechanism to be associated with a reference to a third-party object. Theactuation mechanism, which can be associated with a link or othermechanism, can cause the third-party object to be presented via a userinterface of the communication platform via a frame, as described below.In some examples, the third-party object can be presented “in context”of the communication platform so that a user can interact with thecommunication platform and the third-party object within a userinterface of the communication platform. In at least one example, thethird-party object can be interactable such that a user can edit thethird-party object within the user interface of the communicationplatform. Additional details are provided below.

In an example where functionality associated with the communicationplatform is integrated into a third-party platform, a user interface ofthe third-party platform, which can be presented via an application, aweb browser, or the like, can include an actuation mechanism associatedwith the communication platform. Based at least in part on receiving anindication that the actuation mechanism has been actuated, theintegration management component 116 can cause data associated with thecommunication platform to be presented via the user interface. In someexamples, such data can be presented as a group-based communication userinterface associated with the communication platform. As such, a usercan interact with the third-party platform and the communicationplatform via a same user interface. Additional details are providedbelow.

In at least one example, the channel management component 118 can managecommunication channels (i.e., “channels”) of the communication platform.In at least one example, the communication platform can be“channel-based” such that the platform can be organized intocommunication channels having security (that can be defined bypermissions) to limit access to defined groups of users (e.g., membersof the communication channels). A communication channel, or virtualspace, can be a data route used for exchanging data between and amongsystems and devices associated with the communication platform. In someexamples, a communication channel may be “public,” which may allow anyuser within a group (e.g., associated with an organization identifier,associated with a workspace identifier, etc.) with which thecommunication channel is associated to join and participate in the datasharing through the communication channel. In some examples, acommunication channel may be “private,” which may restrict datacommunications in the communication channel to certain users or usershaving particular roles (e.g., managers, administrators, etc.) and/ortypes (e.g., verified, etc.).

In some examples, a communication channel may be “shared,” which mayallow users associated with two or more different groups (e.g., entitiesassociated with two or more different organization and/or workspaceidentifiers) to join and participate in the data sharing through thecommunication channel. A shared communication channel may be public suchthat it is accessible to any user of groups associated with the sharedcommunication channel, or may be private such that it is restricted toaccess by certain users or users having particular roles and/or types. A“shared communication channel” or an “externally shared communicationchannel” can enable two or more organizations, such as a firstorganization and a second organization to share data, exchangecommunications, and the like. In an example, the first organization andthe second organization can be associated with different organizationidentifiers, can be associated with different business entities, havedifferent tax identification numbers, and/or otherwise can be associatedwith different permissions such that users associated with the firstorganization and users associated with the second organization are notable to access data associated with the other organization, without theestablishment of an externally shared channel. In some examples, ashared communication channel can be shared with one or more differentworkspaces and/or organizations that, without having a sharedcommunication, would not otherwise have access to each other's data bythe nature of the permission-based and/or group-based configuration ofthe communication platform described herein.

In at least one example, the channel management component 118 canreceive a request to generate a communication channel. In some examples,the request can include a name that is to be associated with thecommunication channel, one or more users to invite to join thecommunication channel, and/or permissions associated with thecommunication channel. In at least one example, one or more useridentifiers associated with one or more users and/or one or more useraccounts can be mapped to, or otherwise associated with, a communicationchannel (e.g., a communication channel identifier associated therewith).User(s) associated with a communication channel can be “members” of thecommunication channel. Members of a communication channel cancommunicate with other members via the communication channel. That is,in at least one example, the channel management component 118 canestablish a communication channel between and among various usercomputing devices associated with user identifiers associated with thecommunication channel, allowing the user computing devices tocommunicate and share data between and among each other. As describedherein, in some examples, such communication and/or sharing of data canbe via one or more messages that can be exchanged via a communicationchannel. In at least one example, the channel management component 118can manage such communications and/or sharing of data. In some examples,data associated with a communication channel can be presented via a userinterface.

As described above, in at least one example, one or more permissions canbe mapped to, or otherwise associated with, a communication channeland/or members associated therewith. Such permission(s) can indicatewhich user(s) have permission to access the communication channel,actions and/or messages permitted in the communication channel, whichuser(s) and/or type(s) of users are permitted to add or remove members,which user(s) and/or types of users are permitted to share thecommunication channel with other users, a retention policy associatedwith data in the communication channel, whether the communicationchannel is public or private, or the like.

In at least one example, the direct message management component 119 canmanage “direct messages,” which can comprise communications withindividual users or multiple specified users (e.g., instead of all, or asubset of, members of an organization). In at least one example, a“direct message” can comprise a data route, or virtual space, used forexchanging data between and among systems and devices associated withthe communication platform. In some examples, a direct message can be aprivate message between two or more users of the communication platform.In some examples, a direct message may be “shared,” which may allowusers associated with two or more different groups (e.g., entitiesassociated with two or more different organization and/or workspaceidentifiers) to join and participate in the data sharing through thedirect message.

In at least one example, the direct message management component 119 canreceive a request to generate a direct message. In some examples, therequest can include identifiers associated with one or more users thatare intended recipient(s) of the direct message. In at least oneexample, one or more user identifiers associated with one or more usersand/or one or more user accounts can be mapped to, or otherwiseassociated with, a direct message (e.g., or direct message identifierassociated therewith). User(s) associated with a direct message cancommunicate with one another and/or otherwise share data with oneanother via the direct message. As described herein, in some examples,such communication and/or sharing of data can be via one or moremessages that can be exchanged via the direct message. In at least oneexample, the direct message management component 119 can manage suchcommunications and/or sharing of data. In some examples, data associatedwith a direct message can be presented via a user interface.

In at least one example, the operating system 120 can manage theprocessor(s) 108, computer-readable media 110, hardware, software, etc.of the server(s) 102.

In at least one example, the datastore 122 can be configured to storedata that is accessible, manageable, and updatable. In some examples,the datastore 122 can be integrated with the server(s) 102, as shown inFIG. 1. In other examples, the datastore 122 can be located remotelyfrom the server(s) 102 and can be accessible to the server(s) 102 and/oruser device(s), such as the user device 104. The datastore 122 cancomprise one or multiple databases, which can include user data 124,permission data 126, channel data 128, and direct message (DM) data 130.Additional or alternative data may be stored in the datastore and/or oneor more other datastores.

In at least one example, the user data 124 can store data associatedwith users of the communication platform. In at least one example, theuser data 124 can store data in user profiles (which can also bereferred to as “user accounts”), which can store data associated with auser, including, but not limited to, one or more user identifiersassociated with multiple, different organizations, groups, or entitieswith which the user is associated, one or more communication channelidentifiers associated with communication channels to which the user hasbeen granted access, one or more group identifiers for groups (or,organizations, teams, entities, or the like) with which the user isassociated, an indication whether the user is an owner or manager of anycommunication channels, an indication whether the user has anycommunication channel restrictions, a plurality of messages, a pluralityof emojis, a plurality of conversations, a plurality of conversationtopics, an avatar, an email address, a real name (e.g., John Doe), ausername (e.g., j doe), a password, a time zone, a status, a token, andthe like.

In at least one example, the permission data 126 can store dataassociated with permissions of individual users of the communicationplatform. In some examples, permissions can be set automatically or byan administrator of the communication platform, an employer, enterprise,organization, or other entity that utilizes the communication platform,a team leader, a group leader, or other entity that utilizes thecommunication platform for communicating with team members, groupmembers, or the like, an individual user, or the like. In some examples,permissions associated with an individual user can be mapped to, orotherwise associated with, a profile and/or account associated with theuser data 124. In some examples, permissions can indicate which userscan communicate directly with other users, which channels a user ispermitted to access, restrictions on individual channels, whichworkspaces the user is permitted to access, restrictions on individualworkspaces, and the like. In at least one example, the permissions cansupport the communication platform by maintaining security for limitingaccess to a defined group of users. In some examples, such users can bedefined by common access credentials, group identifiers, or the like, asdescribed above.

In some examples, the permission data 126 can store data associated withpermissions of groups associated with the communication platform. Insome examples, permissions can be set automatically or by anadministrator of the communication platform, an employer, enterprise,organization, or other entity that utilizes the communication platform,a team leader, a group leader, or other entity that utilizes thecommunication platform for communicating with team members, groupmembers, or the like, an individual user, or the like. In some examples,permissions associated with a group can be mapped to, or otherwiseassociated with, data associated with the group. In some examples,permissions can indicate restrictions on individual groups, restrictionson communication channel(s) associated with individual groups,restrictions on user(s) associated with individual groups, and the like.In at least one example, the permissions can support the communicationplatform by maintaining security for limiting access to a defined groupof users. In some examples, such groups can be defined by common accesscredentials, group identifiers, or the like, as described above.

In some examples, the permission data 126 can store data associated withpermissions of individual communication channels. In some examples,permissions can be set automatically or by an administrator of thecommunication platform, an employer, enterprise, organization, or otherentity that utilizes the communication platform, a team leader, a groupleader, or other entity that utilizes the communication platform forcommunicating with team members, group members, or the like, anindividual user, or the like. In some examples, permissions associatedwith a communication channel can be mapped to, or otherwise associatedwith, data associated with the communication channel in the channel data128. In some examples, permissions can indicate restrictions onindividual communication channels, restrictions on user(s) associatedwith individual communication channels, and the like.

In some examples, the permission data 126 can indicate which third-partyplatforms can be integrated into the communication platform forparticular groups (e.g., organizations, workspaces), communicationchannels, direct messages, and/or the like. In some examples, thepermission data 126 can be set by administrators or other users havingparticular roles associated with the ability to set permissions.

In at least one example, the channel data 128 can store data associatedwith individual communication channels. In at least one example, thechannel management component 118 can establish a communication channelbetween and among various user computing devices, allowing the usercomputing devices to communicate and share data between and among eachother. In at least one example, a communication channel identifier maybe assigned to a communication channel, which indicates the physicaladdress in the channel data 128 where data related to that communicationchannel is stored.

In at least one example, the DM data 130 can store data associated withindividual direct messages. In at least one example, the direct messagemanagement component 119 can establish a direct message between andamong various user computing devices, allowing the user computingdevices to communicate and share data between and among each other viathe direct message. In at least one example, a direct message identifiermay be assigned to a direct message, which indicates the physicaladdress in the DM data 130 where data related to that direct message isstored.

In some examples, the datastore 122 can be partitioned into discreteitems of data that may be accessed and managed individually (e.g., datashards). Data shards can simplify many technical tasks, such as dataretention, unfurling (e.g., detecting that message contents include alink, crawling the link's metadata, and determining a uniform summary ofthe metadata), and integration settings. In some examples, data shardscan be associated with groups (e.g., organizations, workspaces),communication channels, direct messages, users, or the like.

In some examples, individual groups can be associated with a databaseshard within the datastore 122 that stores data related to a particulargroup identification. For example, a database shard may store electroniccommunication data associated with members of a particular group, whichenables members of that particular group to communicate and exchangedata with other members of the same group in real time or near-realtime. In this example, the group itself can be the owner of the databaseshard and has control over where and how the related data is stored. Insome examples, a database shard can store data related to two or moregroups (e.g., as in a shared channel).

In some examples, a communication channel can be associated with adatabase shard within the datastore 122 that stores data related to aparticular channel identification. For example, a database shard maystore electronic communication data associated with the communicationchannel, which enables members of that particular communication channelto communicate and exchange data with other members of the samecommunication channel in real time or near-real time. In this example, agroup or organization can be the owner of the database shard and cancontrol where and how the related data is stored.

In some examples, a direct message can be associated with a databaseshard within the datastore 122 that stores data related to a particulardirect message identification. For example, a database shard may storeelectronic communication data associated with the direct message, whichenables a user associated with a particular direct message tocommunicate and exchange data with other users associated with the samedirect message in real time or near-real time. In this example, a groupor organization can be the owner of the database shard and can controlwhere and how the related data is stored.

In some examples, individual users can be associated with a databaseshard within the datastore 122 that stores data related to a particularuser account. For example, a database shard may store electroniccommunication data associated with an individual user, which enables theuser to communicate and exchange data with other users of thecommunication platform in real time or near-real time. In some examples,the user itself can be the owner of the database shard and has controlover where and how the related data is stored.

The communication interface(s) 112 can include one or more interfacesand hardware components for enabling communication with various otherdevices (e.g., the user computing device 104), such as over thenetwork(s) 106 or directly. In some examples, the communicationinterface(s) 112 can facilitate communication via Web sockets,Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) (e.g., using API calls),HypterText Transfer Protocols (HTTPs), etc.

The server(s) 102 can further be equipped with various input/outputdevices 114 (e.g., I/O devices). Such I/O devices 114 can include adisplay, various user interface controls (e.g., buttons, joystick,keyboard, mouse, touch screen, etc.), audio speakers, connection portsand so forth.

In at least one example, the user computing device 104 can include oneor more processors 132, computer-readable media 134, one or morecommunication interfaces 136, and input/output devices 138.

In at least one example, each processor of the processor(s) 132 can be asingle processing unit or multiple processing units, and can includesingle or multiple computing units or multiple processing cores. Theprocessor(s) 132 can comprise any of the types of processors describedabove with reference to the processor(s) 108 and may be the same as ordifferent than the processor(s) 108.

The computer-readable media 134 can comprise any of the types ofcomputer-readable media 134 described above with reference to thecomputer-readable media 110 and may be the same as or different than thecomputer-readable media 110. Functional components stored in thecomputer-readable media can optionally include at least one application140 and an operating system 142.

In at least one example, the application 140 can be a mobileapplication, a web application, or a desktop application, which can beprovided by the communication platform or which can be an otherwisededicated application. In at least one example, the application 140 canbe a native application associated with the communication platform. Insome examples, individual user computing devices associated with theenvironment 100 can have an instance or versioned instance of theapplication 140, which can be downloaded from an application store,accessible via the Internet, or otherwise executable by the processor(s)132 to perform operations as described herein. That is, the application140 can be an access point, enabling the user computing device 104 tointeract with the server(s) 102 to access and/or use communicationservices available via the communication platform. In at least oneexample, the application 140 can facilitate the exchange of data betweenand among various other user computing devices, for example via theserver(s) 102. In at least one example, the application 140 can presentuser interfaces, as described herein. In at least one example, a usercan interact with the user interfaces via touch input, keyboard input,mouse input, spoken input, or any other type of input. Additional oralternative access points, such as a web browser, can be used to enablethe user computing device 104 to interact with the server(s) 102 asdescribed herein. That is, in examples where the application 140 isdescribed as performing an operation below, in an additional oralternative example, such an operation can be performed by anotheraccess point, such as a web browser or the like.

In some examples, the application 140 can annotate a user interface withindication(s) of third-party platform integration, as described below,and can facilitate the retrieval of a third-party object (e.g., from thethird-party server(s) 123) for presentation via a user interface of thecommunication platform. Additional details are provided below. Inadditional or alternative examples, as described above, third-partyplatforms can be integrated into the communication platform via anextension. In such an example, a web browser can annotate a userinterface with indication(s) of third-party platform integration, asdescribed below, and can facilitate the retrieval of a third-partyobject (e.g., from the third-party server(s) 123) for presentation via auser interface of the communication platform (e.g., instead of or inaddition to the application 140).

A non-limiting example of a user interface 144 is shown in FIG. 1. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, the user interface 144 can present dataassociated with one or more communication channels. In some examples,the user interface 144 can include a first section 146 (e.g., which canbe a portion, pane, or other partitioned unit of the user interface144), that includes indicator(s) (e.g., user interface element(s) orobject(s)) representing data associated with communication channel(s),direct message(s), etc. with which the user (e.g., account of the user)is associated. Additional details associated with the first section 146and indicator(s) are described below with reference to FIG. 2A.

In at least one example, the user interface 144 can include a secondsection 148 (e.g., which can be a portion, pane, or other partitionedunit of the user interface 144) that can be associated with a data feed(or, “feed”) indicating messages posted to and/or actions taken withrespect to one or more communication channels and/or other virtualspaces for facilitating communications (e.g., a virtual space associatedwith direct message communication(s), a virtual space associated withevent(s) and/or action(s), etc.) as described herein. In at least oneexample, data associated with the second section 148 can be associatedwith the same or different workspaces. That is, in some examples, thesecond section 148 can present data associated with the same ordifferent workspaces via an integrated feed. In some examples, the datacan be organized and/or is sortable by date, time (e.g., when associateddata is posted or an associated operation is otherwise performed), typeof action and/or data, workspace, communication channel, user, topic,relevance metric, and/or the like. In some examples, such data can beassociated with an indication of which user (e.g., member of thecommunication channel) posted the message and/or performed an action. Inexamples where the second section 148 presents data associated withmultiple workspaces, at least some data can be associated with anindication of which workspace the data is associated with.

In at least one example, the first section 146 and the second section148, in combination, can be associated with a “group-based communicationuser interface” from which a user can interact with the communicationplatform. Additional details associated with the user interface 144, thefirst section 146, and the second section 148, are described below withreference to FIG. 2A.

In at least one example, references to third-party objects within theuser interface 144 can be annotated with respective actuationmechanisms. An example of such an actuation mechanism 150 is shown inFIG. 1. In some examples, such an actuation mechanism 150 may appear solong as the permission data 126 indicates that the user, communicationchannel, direct message, group, and/or the like is permitted to accessobjects from the corresponding third-party platform (e.g., that thethird-party platform is integrated and the relevant entity haspermission to access objects of that third-party platform). Ifpermission data 126 indicates that the user, communication channel,direct message, group, and/or the like is not permitted to access theobject and/or third-party platform, the actuation mechanism 150 may notbe presented or may be disabled (e.g., grayed out or the like). In atleast one example, based at least in part on detecting an inputassociated with the actuation mechanism 150, the third-party objectassociated therewith can be presented in a third section 152 of the userinterface 144 (e.g., which can be a portion, pane, or other partitionedunit of the user interface 144). In at least one example, actuation ofthe actuation mechanism 150 can cause the third-party object to beretrieved (e.g., from the third-party server(s) 123) and opened withinthe user interface 144. In at least one example, a user can view and/orinteract (e.g., edit) the third-party object via the third section 152.In at least one example, the first section 146 and the second section148 can be presented via a first frame (e.g., iframe) and the thirdsection 152 can be presented via a second frame (e.g., iframe). That is,section(s) of the user interface 144 associated with the communicationplatform can be presented via a first frame and a section of the userinterface 144 associated with the third-party platform can be presentedvia a second frame. Additional details are provided below.

In at least one example, the operating system 142 can manage theprocessor(s) 132, computer-readable media 134, hardware, software, etc.of the user computing device 104.

The communication interface(s) 136 can include one or more interfacesand hardware components for enabling communication with various otherdevices (e.g., the user computing device 104), such as over thenetwork(s) 106 or directly. In some examples, the communicationinterface(s) 136 can facilitate communication via Websockets, APIs(e.g., using API calls), HTTPs, etc.

The user computing device 104 can further be equipped with variousinput/output devices 138 (e.g., I/O devices). Such I/O devices 138 caninclude a display, various user interface controls (e.g., buttons,joystick, keyboard, mouse, touch screen, etc.), audio speakers,connection ports and so forth.

While techniques described herein are described as being performed bythe integration management component 116, the channel managementcomponent 118, the direct message management component 119, and theapplication 140, techniques described herein can be performed by anyother component, or combination of components, which can be associatedwith the server(s) 102, the user computing device 104, or a combinationthereof.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example user interface 200 presented via acommunication platform, as described herein. The user interface 200 cancorrespond to the user interface 144 described above with reference toFIG. 1. As described above, in some examples, a user interface 200presented via the communication platform can include a first section 202(which can correspond to the first section 146 described above withreference to FIG. 1) that includes indicator(s) (e.g., user interfaceelement(s) or object(s)) representing virtual space(s) associated withthe workspace(s) with which the user (e.g., account of the user) isassociated. In at least one example, the first section 202 can includeone or more sub-sections, which can represent different virtual spaces.For example, a first sub-section 204 can include indicators representingvirtual spaces that can aggregate data associated with a plurality ofcommunication channels and/or workspaces. In at least one example, eachvirtual space can be associated with an indicator in the firstsub-section 204. In some examples, an indicator can be associated withan actuation mechanism, that when actuated, can cause the application140 to present data associated with the corresponding virtual space viaa second section 206 of the user interface 200 (which can correspond tothe second section 148 described above with reference to FIG. 1).

In at least one example, a virtual space can be associated with allunread data associated with each of the workspaces with which the useris associated. That is, in some examples, if the user requests to accessthe virtual space associated with “unreads,” all data that has not beenread (e.g., viewed) by the user can be presented in the second section206, for example in a feed. In another example, “threads” can beassociated with messages, files, etc. posted in threads to messagesposted in a communication channel and/or a virtual space associated with“mentions and reactions” (e.g., “M & R”) can be associated with messagesor threads where the user (e.g., User F) has been mentioned (e.g., via atag) or another user has reacted (e.g., via an emoji, reaction, or thelike) to a message or thread posted by the user. In some examples, ifthe user requests to access the virtual space associated with “snippetsof content,” snippets of content associated with the user, which can beassociated with different communication channels and/or virtual spaces,can be presented via a same feed. In some examples, such data can beorganized and/or is sortable by date, time (e.g., when associated datais posted or an associated operation is otherwise performed), type ofaction and/or data, workspace, communication channel, user, topic,relevance metric, and/or the like. In some examples, such data can beassociated with an indication of which user (e.g., member of thecommunication channel) posted the message, performed an action, and/orthe like. Additional details are described below.

In at least one example, the first section 202 of the user interface 200can include a second sub-section 208 that includes indicatorsrepresenting communication channels. In some examples, the communicationchannels can include public channels, private channels, shared channels(e.g., between workspaces or organizations), single workspace channels,cross-workspace channels, combinations of the foregoing, or the like. Insome examples, the communication channels represented can be associatedwith a single workspace. In some examples, the communication channelsrepresented can be associated with different workspaces (e.g.,cross-workspace). In some examples, the communication channelsrepresented can be associated with combinations of communicationchannels associated with a single workspace and communication channelsassociated with different workspaces.

In some examples, the second sub-section 208 can depict allcommunication channels, or a subset of all communication channels, thatthe user has permission to access (e.g., as determined by the permissiondata 126). In such examples, the communication channels can be arrangedalphabetically, based on most recent interaction, based on frequency ofinteractions, based on communication channel type (e.g., public,private, shared, cross-workspace, etc.), based on workspace, inuser-designated sections, or the like. In some examples, the secondsub-section 208 can depict all communication channels, or a subset ofall communication channels, that the user is a member of, and the usercan interact with the user interface 200 to browse or view othercommunication channels that the user is not a member of but are notcurrently displayed in the second sub-section 208. In some examples,different types of communication channels (e.g., public, private,shared, etc.) can be in different sections of the second sub-section208, or can have their own sub-sections or sub-sections in the userinterface 200. In some examples, communication channels associated withdifferent workspaces can be in different portions of the secondsub-section 208, or can have their own sections or sub-sections in theuser interface 200.

In some examples, the indicators can be associated with user interfaceelements that visually differentiate types of communication channels.For example, Channel B is associated with a double square user interfaceelement instead of a circle user interface element. As a non-limitingexample, and for the purpose of this discussion, the double square userinterface element can indicate that the associated communication channel(e.g., Channel B) is an externally shared communication channel. In someexamples, such a user interface element can be the same for allexternally shared communication channels. In other examples, such a userinterface element can be specific to the other group with which theexternally shared communication channel is associated. In some examples,additional or alternative graphical elements can be used todifferentiate between public communication channels, privatecommunication channels, shared communication channels, communicationchannels associated with different workspaces, and the like. In otherexamples, communication channels that the user is not a current memberof may not be displayed in the second sub-section 208 of the userinterface 200. In such examples, the user may navigate to a differentinterface (not shown) to browse additional channels that are accessibleto the user but to which the user is not currently a member.

In addition to the second sub-section 208, the first section 202 caninclude a third sub-section 210 that can include indicatorsrepresentative of direct messages. That is, the third sub-section 210can include indicators representative of virtual spaces that areassociated with private messages between one or more users, as describedabove.

As described above, in at least one example, the user interface 200 caninclude a second section 206 that can be associated with a feedindicating messages posted to and/or actions taken with respect to acommunication channel and/or other virtual space (e.g., a virtual spaceassociated with direct message communication(s), a virtual spaceassociated with event(s) and/or action(s), etc.) for facilitatingcommunications. As described above, in at least one example, dataassociated with the second section 206 can be associated with the sameor different workspaces. That is, in some examples, the second section206 can present data associated with the same or different workspacesvia an integrated feed. In some examples, the data can be organizedand/or is sortable by date, time (e.g., when associated data is postedor an associated operation is otherwise performed), type of actionand/or data, workspace, communication channel, user, topic, relevancemetric, and/or the like. In some examples, such data can be associatedwith an indication of which user posted the message and/or performed anaction.

For purposes of this discussion, a “message” can refer to anyelectronically generated digital object provided by a user using theuser computing device 104 and that is configured for display within acommunication channel and/or other virtual space for facilitatingcommunications (e.g., a virtual space associated with direct messagecommunication(s), etc.) as described herein. A message may include anytext, image, video, audio, or combination thereof provided by a user(using a user computing device). For instance, the user may provide amessage that includes text, as well as an image and a video, within themessage as message contents. In such an example, the text, image, andvideo would comprise the message. Each message sent or posted to acommunication channel of the communication platform can include metadatacomprising a sending user identifier, a message identifier, messagecontents, a group identifier, a communication channel identifier, or thelike. In at least one example, each of the foregoing identifiers maycomprise American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII)text, a pointer, a memory address, or the like.

In some examples, a user can comment on a message in a “thread.” Athread can be a message associated with another message that is notposted to a communication channel, but instead is maintained within anobject associated with the original message. Messages and/or threads canbe associated with file(s), emoji(s), application(s), etc.

A communication channel or other virtual space can be associated withdata and/or content other than messages, or data and/or content that isassociated with messages. For example, non-limiting examples ofadditional data that can be presented via the second section 206 of theuser interface 144 include members added to and/or removed from thecommunication channel, file(s) (e.g., file attachment(s)) uploadedand/or removed from the communication channel, application(s) added toand/or removed from the communication channel, post(s) (data that can beedited collaboratively, in near real-time by one or members of acommunication channel) added to and/or removed from the communicationchannel, description added to, modified, and/or removed from thecommunication channel, modifications of properties of the communicationchannel, etc. In some examples, objects, which can comprise files,applications, and/or the like, can be associated with a communicationchannel or other virtual space (e.g., a direct message). In someexamples, such objects can be associated with one or more third-partyplatforms. That is, in some examples, individual third-party objects canbe referenced in the second section 206.

In some examples, the second section 206 can comprise a feed associatedwith a single communication channel. In such examples, data associatedwith the communication channel can be presented via the feed. In atleast one example, data associated with a communication channel can beviewable to at least some of the users of a group of users associatedwith a same group identifier. In some examples, for members of acommunication channel, the content of the communication channel (e.g.,messaging communications and/or objects) can be displayed to each memberof the communication channel. For instance, a common set of group-basedmessaging communications can be displayed to each member of thecommunication channel such that the content of the communication channel(e.g., messaging communications and/or objects) may not vary per memberof the communication channel. In some examples, messaging communicationsassociated with a communication channel can appear differently fordifferent users (e.g., based on personal configurations, groupmembership, permissions, policies, etc.).

In at least one example, the format of the individual communicationchannels or virtual spaces may appear differently to different users. Insome examples, the format of the individual communication channels orvirtual spaces may appear differently based on which workspace ororganization a user is currently interacting with or most recentlyinteracted with. In some examples, the format of the individualcommunication channels or virtual spaces may appear differently fordifferent users (e.g., based on personal configurations, groupmembership, permission(s), etc.).

In at least one example, the user interface 200 can include a searchmechanism 212, wherein a user can input a search term and the server(s)102 can perform a search associated with the communication platform. Insome examples, the search can be performed across each group with whichthe user is associated, or the search can be restricted to a particulargroup, based on a user specification.

In FIG. 2A, the user can interact with the user interface element thatcorresponds to Channel D in the second sub-section 208 and as such, afeed associated with the communication channel can be presented via thesecond section 206 of the user interface. In some examples, the secondsection 206 can be associated with a header that includes user interfaceelements 214 representing information associated with Channel D.Furthermore, the second section 206 can include user interface elements216-220 which each represent messages posted to the communicationchannel. As illustrated, the user interface elements 216-220 can includean indication of a user who posted the message, a time when the messagewas posted, content associated with the message, reactions associatedwith the message, and/or the like. In at least one example, the secondsection 206 can include an input mechanism 222, which can be associatedwith a message composition user interface to enable a user to compose amessage to be posted to the communication channel.

In at least one example, one or more of the user interface elements 214can indicate one or more third-party platforms that are integrated intothe communication platform and/or the communication channel. Asillustrated, three different third-party platforms are integrated intothe communication platform and/or the communication channel, but more orless than three third-party platforms can be integrated into acommunication platform and/or communication channel. In some examples,the third-party platform(s) shown can be the third-party platform(s) ofwhich the permission data 126 permits the user, communication channel,direct message, and/or the like to access. As illustrated, a third-partyapplication associated with each third-party platform is integrated intothe communication platform and/or the communication channel (e.g., “AppA,” “App B,” and “App C”). In some examples, each of the third-partyplatforms can be associated with a user interface element, which can bea textual element, graphical element, logo, etc. In some examples, sucha user interface element can be an actuation mechanism that, whenactuated, can cause reference(s) to object(s) associated with therespective third-party application to be annotated with an actuationmechanism to enable retrieval of the object(s). In some examples, suchindicator(s) can be associated with an additional or alternativecomponent of the user interface (e.g., the browser bar, a sidebar,etc.).

In at least one example, a third-party platform can be integrated intothe communication platform using techniques described above such thatany user and/or group can access functionality associated with thethird-party platform (subject to permission(s)). In some examples,different third-party platforms can be integrated into differentcommunication channels and/or direct messages. That is, in someexamples, a third-party platform can be integrated with thecommunication platform and mapped to, or otherwise associated with,individual communication channels or direct messages. In some examples,access to functionality associated with such a third-party platform canbe controlled by permission(s) associated with the communicationchannels and/or direct messages (e.g., the permission data 126). In someexamples, different third-party platforms can be integrated intodifferent groups. That is, in some examples, a third-party platform canbe integrated with and mapped to, or otherwise associated with, aparticular group (e.g., organization, workspace, etc.). In someexamples, access to functionality associated with such a third-partyplatform can be controlled by permission(s) associated with theparticular group.

In some examples, the user interface 200 can be annotated with actuationmechanisms indicating that individual objects in the user interface 200are accessible via one or more integrated third-party platforms. In someexamples, individual actuation mechanisms can correspond to the userinterface element representative of the third-party platform (e.g., ofthe user interface elements 214). In at least one example, the actuationmechanism can comprise a link or other mechanism that, when actuated,can cause a corresponding object to be presented via the user interface200. That is, such an actuation mechanism can cause the object to beretrieved from the third-party platform, opened within the userinterface 200, and interactable via the user interface 200.

In some examples, the user interface 200 can present additional oralternative data associated with the communication platform. Forinstance, in some examples, the user interface 200 can present one ormore boards from which third-party objects can be accessed, asillustrated in FIG. 2B. In at least one example, boards, as describedherein, can be associated with individual groups and/or communicationchannels to enable users of the communication platform to create,interact with, and/or view data associated with such boards. That is, aboard, which can be an “electronic board,” can be a virtual space,canvas, page, or the like for collaborative communication and/ororganization within the communication platform. In at least one example,a board can support editable text and/or objects that can be ordered,added, deleted, modified, and/or the like. In some examples, a board canbe associated with permissions defining which users of a communicationplatform can view and/or edit the board. In some examples, a board canbe associated with a communication channel and at least some members ofthe communication channel can view and/or edit the board. In someexamples, a board can be sharable such that data associated with theboard is accessible to and/or interactable for members of the multiplecommunication channels, workspaces, organizations, and/or the like.

In at least one example, a board can include section(s) and/orobject(s). In some examples, each section can include one or moreobjects. In at least one example, an object can be associated with anobject type, which can include, but is not limited to, text (e.g., whichcan be editable), a task, an event, an image, a graphic, a link to alocal object, a link to a remote object, a file, and/or the like. Insome examples, the sections and/or objects can be reordered and/orotherwise rearranged, new sections and/or objects can be added orremoved, and/or data associated with such sections and/or objects can beedited and/or modified. That is, boards can be created and/or modifiedfor various uses. That is, users can customize and/or personalize boardsto serve individual needs as described herein. As an example, sectionsand/or objects can be arranged to create a project board that can beused to generate and/or assign tasks, track progress, and/or otherwisemanage a project. Further, in some examples, boards can present companymetrics and also enable access to company goals so that such informationcan be stored and/or accessed via a single location. In some examples,boards can be used to keep track of work progress and/or career growth,which can be used by managers or supervisors for managing and/orsupervising employees, agents, and/or other workers. In at least oneexample, a board can be used to track incidents, incoming customerservice requests, and/or the like. Additional details associated withboards are provided in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/993,859,filed on Aug. 14, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated byreference herein.

A non-limiting example of the user interface 200 presenting one or moreboards is illustrated in FIG. 2B. As illustrated in FIG. 2B, the secondsection 206 comprises multiple boards 226. In at least one example, aninteraction with one of the boards 226 can cause the corresponding boardto be presented via the user interface 200 (e.g., in the second section206, for example). In at least one example, one or more user interfaceelements 228 can indicate one or more third-party platforms that areintegrated into the communication platform. As illustrated, threedifferent third-party platforms are integrated into the communicationplatform, but more or less than three third-party platforms can beintegrated into a communication platform and/or communication channel.Similar to what is described above, if a user does not have permission(e.g., per the permission data 126) to access a particular third-partyapplication, such a third-party application may not be presented (e.g.,in the user interface element(s) 228). That is, in at least one example,the user interface element(s) 228 can represent third-party platformsthat have been (i) integrated into the communication platform and (ii)are accessible to the user per permission data 126. In at least oneexample, each of the third-party platforms can be associated with a userinterface element, which can be a textual element, graphical element,logo, etc. In some examples, such a user interface element can be anactuation mechanism that, when actuated, can cause reference(s) toobject(s) associated with the respective third-party application to beannotated with an actuation mechanism to enable retrieval of theobject(s), as described above. An example of such an actuation mechanism230 is illustrated in FIG. 2B. In some examples, if a board, acommunication channel with which a board is associated, and/or a groupwith which a board is associated does not have permission to access aparticular third-party application, object(s) associated with thethird-party application may not be annotated or an actuation mechanismassociated therewith can be disabled.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of the user interface 200 described inFIG. 2A, wherein a third-party object is presented within in the userinterface 200. In at least one example, based at least in part ondetecting an input associated with the actuation mechanism 224, thecorresponding third-party object (e.g., Object A) can be retrieved fromthe third-party platform and can be presented in another section (e.g.,a third section 300) of the user interface 200. The third section 300can correspond to the third section 152 described above with referenceto FIG. 1. In at least one example, the third section 300 of the userinterface 200 can be presented at the same time as the first section 202and the second section 206. The third-party object can be presented bythe third section 300 to enable the user to view, edit, and/or otherwiseinteract with the third-party object while interacting with thecommunication platform. That is, the third-party object (e.g., Object A)can be presented in context. In at least one example, the user can senda message via the second section 206 while editing the third-partyobject in the third section 300.

In some examples, as described above, the first section 202 and thesecond section 206 can be presented via a first frame (e.g., iframe) andthe third section 300 can be presented via a second frame (e.g.,iframe). In at least one example, both the first frame and the secondframe can be presented via the user interface 200 at the same time. Insome examples, the second frame can pop out of the instance of thecommunication platform and can be snapped back into the instance of thecommunication platform. That is, in some examples, based at least inpart on receiving a request to extract the third-party object (e.g., viaan input associated with the second section 206 and/or an actuationmechanism 301 associated therewith), the second section can be presentedvia a new user interface, frame, and/or window external to the userinterface. In some examples, the user can request to minimize, close, orotherwise collapse the new user interface, frame, and/or window backinto the user interface 200. In some examples, the first frame and thesecond frame can be independently interactable, such that a user caninteract with data presented via each frame without affecting content inthe other frame. In some examples, actuation of the actuation mechanism224 can cause the user interface 200 to be updated to include theframes. In some examples, the first frame can retrieve and render datafrom the communication platform and the second frame can retrieve andrender data from the third-party platform. As described above, in someexamples, the second frame can point to the communication platform thatcan then retrieve and render data associated with the third-partyplatform.

In some examples, the third section 300 can include one or more userinterface elements 302 that can be used to scroll through additionalthird-party objects that have been accessed (e.g., opened) via thecommunication platform. In some examples, by interacting with the userinterface element(s) 302, the user can access additional or alternativethird-party object(s), which can be presented via the third section 300.In some examples, the individual third-party object(s) can be associatedwith a same third-party platform. In some examples, the individualthird-party object(s) can be associated with different third-partyplatforms. In some examples, the permission data 126 can control whichof the previously accessed third-party objects can be accessed byinteracting with the user interface element(s) 302.

In some examples, a third-party object and/or the third section 300 canbe presented via the third section 300 so long as a user is interactingwith a particular group, communication channel, direct message, and/orthe like. That is, in some examples, a third-party object and/or thethird section 300 can be mapped to, or otherwise associated with, aparticular group (e.g., organization, workspace, etc.) such that so longas a user is interacting with the group, the third-party object and/orthird section 300 can be presented via the user interface 200. However,when the user navigates away from the particular group, the third-partyobject and/or third section 300 may no longer be presented via the userinterface 200. In some examples, when the user returns to the particulargroup, the third-party object and/or third section 300 can again bepresented via the user interface 200. As another example, in someexamples, a third-party object and/or the third section 300 can bemapped to, or otherwise associated with, a particular communicationchannel such that so long as a user is interacting with thecommunication channel, the third-party object and/or third section 300can be presented via the user interface 200. However, when the usernavigates away from the particular communication channel, thethird-party object and/or third section 300 may no longer be presentedvia the user interface 200. In some examples, when the user returns tothe particular communication channel, the third-party object and/orthird section 300 can again be presented via the user interface 200.Similar mapping and/or “stickiness” can apply for direct messages and/orthe like.

In some examples, the third section 300 can be associated with aresizing mechanism to enable resizing of the third section 300 (and,consequently, at least the second section 206). In at least one example,based at least in part on receiving a request to resize (e.g., expand orcontract the width, height, etc.) the third section 300 (e.g., an inputassociated with the resizing mechanism), the application 140 can updatethe user interface 200 so that the second section 206 and the thirdsection 300 reflect the new sizes. In some examples, the application 140can rearrange user interface elements associated with the second section206 based at least in part on resizing the second section 206. FIG. 4illustrates an example wherein the third section 300 has been resized.As illustrated in FIG. 4, one or more of the user interface elementspresented via the second section can be reconfigured to fit the new sizeof the second section 206.

In at least one example, more than one third-party object can beretrieved and presented via section(s) of the user interface 200. Insome examples, as described above, each third-party object that has beenretrieved (e.g., for a communication channel) can be accessible byinteracting with the user interface elements 302. In such examples,different third-party objects can be presented via the third section300. In some examples, each third-party object can be associated withits own section of the user interface 200. For example, as illustratedin FIG. 5, a first third-party object can be presented via the thirdsection 300 and a second third-party object can be presented via afourth section 500. In at least one example, the third section 300 andthe fourth section 500 can be presented within the user interface 200(e.g., in context of the communication platform). In some examples, thethird section 300 and the fourth section 500 can each be presented viatheir own frames. In at least one example, the third section 300 and thefourth section 500 can be independently interactable. In some examples,the third-party objects can be associated with the same third-partyplatform. In some examples, the third-party objects can be associatedwith different third-party platforms. In some examples, another instanceof the communication platform can be presented via the user interface200 (e.g., in another section).

In some examples, a third-party platform can comprise multipleapplications. For example, an internet-related services company caninclude a cloud-based word processing application, a cloud-basedspreadsheet application, a cloud-storage application, and/or the like.In such examples, each application can be presented via a differentsection and/or frame. For instance, in FIG. 5, the first third-partyobject can be associated with a first application associated with athird-party platform and the second third-party object can be associatedwith a second application associated with the same third-party platform.In some examples, third-party objects presented via sections, asdescribed above with reference to FIG. 5, can be associated withdifferent applications of a same third-party platform, same applicationsof a same third-party platform, different applications of differentthird-party applications, and/or the like.

In some examples, one or more resizing mechanisms can enable thesection(s) to be resized. That is, the resizing mechanism 304, asdescribed above, can enable a user to resize (e.g., expand or contract)the width of the third section 300 and/or fourth section 500 (and thus,the first section 202 and second section 206). In some examples, aresizing mechanism 502 can enable a user to resize (e.g., expand orcontract) the height of the third section 300 and/or the fourth section500. In some examples, based at least in part on resizing the heightand/or the width of one of the third section 300 and/or the fourthsection 500, data associated with other section(s) can be reconfiguredbased at least in part on the resized sections.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a user interface 600 presented via athird-party platform. In at least one example, the user interface 600can be presented via an application, a web browser, or other accesspoint, associated with the third-party platform. In at least oneexample, the user interface 600 can present an object 602, associatedwith the third-party platform, that the user can interact with (e.g.,view, edit, etc.). In some examples, the user interface 600 can includean actuation mechanism 604 that can cause a group-based communicationuser interface associated with the communication platform to bepresented via a user interface with the object 602. In some examples,the actuation mechanism 604 can be a control, as shown. In someexamples, the actuation mechanism 604 can be associated with a pop-up,overlay, or the like.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a user interface 700 presented via athird-party platform, wherein functionality associated with acommunication platform is integrated into the third-party platform. Insome examples, based at least in part on detecting an input associatedwith the actuation mechanism 604 described above with reference to FIG.6, a new user interface 700 can be presented by the communicationplatform (e.g., the new user interface 700 can be presented via a webapplication of the communication platform instead of the third-partyplatform). In such an example, the object associated with thethird-party platform can be presented in a first section 702 of the userinterface 700 and a group-based communication user interface associatedwith the communication platform can be presented via a second section704 of the user interface 700. In at least one example, as describedabove, the first section 702 can be presented via a first frame (e.g.,iframe) and the second section 704 can be presented via a second frame(e.g., iframe). In some examples, a user can interact with the firstsection 702 and the second section 704 independently, but within theuser interface 700. That is, the user can access functionalityassociated with the third-party platform from within the communicationplatform. In some examples, the user interface 700 can include aresizing mechanism 706 that can be used to resize the first section 702and/or the second section 704, as described above.

In some examples, based at least in part on detecting an inputassociated with the actuation mechanism 604 described above withreference to FIG. 6, the user interface 700 can be presented by thethird-party platform. That is, in such an example, the user interface700 can be generated based at least in part on an update to the userinterface 600 described above with reference to FIG. 6. In such anexample, the object associated with the third-party platform can bepresented in a first section 702 of the user interface 700 and agroup-based communication user interface associated with thecommunication platform can be presented via a second section 704 of theuser interface 700. In at least one example, as described above, thefirst section 702 can be presented via a first frame (e.g., iframe) andthe second section 704 can be presented via a second frame (e.g.,iframe). In some examples, a user can interact with the first section702 and the second section 704 independently, but within the userinterface 700. That is, the user can access functionality associatedwith the communication platform from within the third-party application.

In some examples, a user can access the user interface 600, describedabove with reference to FIG. 6, from within the communication platform.For example, in some examples, a third-party object presented via thethird section 300 can include an actuation mechanism to enable a user toleave the communication platform and open a third-party applicationassociated with the third-party platform. When the third-partyapplication opens, the user interface 600 can be presented to enable auser to access the third-party object and functionality associated withthe communication platform from within the third-party application anduser interface 600.

FIGS. 8-10 are flowcharts showing example processes involving techniquesas described herein. The processes illustrated in FIGS. 8-10 aredescribed with reference to components described above with reference tothe environment 100 shown in FIG. 1 for convenience and ease ofunderstanding. However, the processes illustrated in FIGS. 8-10 are notlimited to being performed using the components described above withreference to the environment 100. Moreover, the components describedabove with reference to the environment 100 are not limited toperforming the processes illustrated in FIGS. 8-10.

The processes in FIGS. 8-10 are illustrated as collections of blocks inlogical flow graphs, which represent sequences of operations that can beimplemented in hardware, software, or a combination thereof. In thecontext of software, the blocks represent computer-executableinstructions stored on one or more computer-readable storage media that,when executed by processor(s), perform the recited operations.Generally, computer-executable instructions include routines, programs,objects, components, data structures, and the like that performparticular functions or implement particular abstract data types. Theorder in which the operations are described is not intended to beconstrued as a limitation, and any number of the described blocks can becombined in any order and/or in parallel to implement the processes. Insome embodiments, one or more blocks of the process can be omittedentirely. Moreover, the processes in FIGS. 8-10 can be combined in wholeor in part with each other or with other processes.

As noted above, the processes illustrated in FIGS. 8-10 are describedwith reference to components described above in the environment 100shown in FIG. 1 for convenience and ease of understanding. FIG. 1,however, illustrates a single user computing device 104. In practice,the environment 100 can have multiple (e.g., tens of, hundreds of,thousands of, millions of, etc.) user computing devices that are eachsimilarly configured to the user computing device 104.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example process 800 for presenting a third-partyobject via a user interface associated with a communication platform, asdescribed herein.

At operation 802, the integration management component 116 can integratea third-party platform into a communication platform. As describedabove, in some examples, the integration management component 116 canfacilitate the integration of the third-party platform into thecommunication platform. In some examples, a third-party platform can beintegrated into a web browser experience associated with thecommunication platform. For example, in some examples, a third-partyplatform can be integrated into the communication platform via a smallsoftware program (e.g., an extension), as described above. In at leastone example, the extension can cause a frame to be loaded within a webbrowser within which the communication platform is accessible. In someexamples, the frame can access content associated with the third-partyplatform and write content associated therewith into the frame. In someexamples, a third-party platform can be integrated into a nativeapplication associated with the communication platform. For example, insome examples, a third-party platform can be integrated into thecommunication platform by embedding an embeddable browser (e.g., awebview) into a native application associated with the communicationplatform. In such examples, the native application can use theembeddable browser to display web content. That is, in such examples,the native application can have a browser engine embedded therein thatcan programmatically load content (e.g., object(s)) in a user interface,as described herein. In some examples, such content can be loaded into aframe.

At operation 804, the application 140, executable by the user computingdevice 104, can associate an actuation mechanism with a reference to anobject, associated with the third-party platform, presented via a userinterface of the communication platform. As described above, in at leastone example, based at least in part on integrating the third-partyplatform with the communication platform, references to objectsassociated with the third-party platform can be annotated with anactuation mechanism. In some examples, the application 140 can analyzedata associated with a user interface of the communication platform toidentify references to objects. The application 140 can associate anactuation mechanism with a reference to an object in the user interface.The actuation mechanism can be associated with a link or other mechanismthat, when actuated, can cause an associated object to be presented viathe user interface.

In some examples, different users, communication channels, directmessages, groups (e.g., organizations, workspaces, etc.) can beassociated with different permissions, which can indicate whichthird-party platforms are integrated and accessible to such entities.Such permissions can be associated with the permission data 126, asdescribed above. In at least one example, if a third-party platform isnot accessible to a particular entity (e.g., user, communicationchannel, direct message, group, etc.), an actuation mechanism may not beassociated with a corresponding object and/or an actuation mechanismassociated with the corresponding object may be disabled or otherwiseindicate that the object cannot be accessed.

At operation 806, the application 140 can determine whether an inputassociated with the actuation mechanism is detected. In at least oneexample, the application 140 can detect an input associated with theactuation mechanism (e.g., the actuation mechanism has been actuated).If an input is not detected, the application 140 can determine that aninput has not been detected and can return to operation 806 to await anindication of such an input.

At operation 808, the object can be retrieved from the third-partyplatform. In at least one example, based at least in part on determiningthat the actuation mechanism has been actuated, the application 140 cansend a request to the third-party server(s) 123 to retrieve the object.In some examples, based at least in part on determining that theactuation mechanism has been actuated, the application 140 can cause aframe (e.g., an iframe) associated with the third-party platform and/orobject to open within the user interface. In at least one example, theframe can send a request to the third-party server(s) 123 to retrievethe object. In some examples, the request and/or object can be routedthrough the integration management component 116 (e.g., from theapplication 140 and/or the frame). In at least one example, the requestcan be associated with an object identifier.

In some examples, prior to retrieving the object from the third-partyplatform, the component (e.g., the application 140, the integrationmanagement component 116, etc.) facilitating the retrieval can determinewhether the requesting user, communication channel, direct message,group (e.g., organization, workspace, etc.), etc. has permission toaccess the object and/or the third-party platform. In some examples, thecomponent can access permission data 126 to determine whether therequesting user, communication channel, direct message, group (e.g.,organization, workspace, etc.), etc. has permission to access the objectand/or the third-party platform. Based at least in part on determiningthat the requesting user, communication channel, direct message, group(e.g., organization, workspace, etc.), etc. has permission to access theobject and/or the third-party platform, the object can be retrieved.However, if the requesting user, communication channel, direct message,group (e.g., organization, workspace, etc.), etc. does not havepermission to access the object and/or the third-party platform, thecomponent facilitating the retrieval can present an error or otherwiseindicate that the access to the object is not permitted.

At operation 810, the application 140 present the object in a firstsection of the user interface, wherein data associated with thecommunication platform is presented via a second section of the userinterface. Based at least in part on the object being retrieved, theapplication 140 can cause the object to be presented via a userinterface of the communication platform via a frame (e.g., an iframe),as described above. In some examples, the object can be presented “incontext” of the communication platform so that a user can interact withthe communication platform and the object within a user interface of thecommunication platform. That is, as described and illustrated above, agroup-based communication user interface can be presented via a firstsection (e.g., first frame) associated with the user interface and theobject can be presented via a second section (e.g., second frame)associated with the user interface. In at least one example, the objectcan be interactable such that a user can open, view, and/or edit theobject within the user interface of the communication platform (e.g.,without leaving the communication platform).

In at least one example, operations 808 and 810 can be associated withthe application 140 causing a frame to be presented via the userinterface based at least in part on detecting input associated with theactuation mechanism. Based at least in part on causing the frame to bepresented, the frame can request or otherwise point to data associatedwith the third-party platform, wherefrom the object can thus beretrieved. The object can then be presented via the frame, within theuser interface, so that a user can open, view, and/or edit the objectwithout leaving the communication platform.

As described above, in some examples, third-party object(s) and/or thepresentation of third-party object(s) via a section of the userinterface can be mapped to, or otherwise associated with, individualcommunication channels, direct messages, and/or groups (e.g.,organizations, workspaces, etc.). For example, if the object presentedvia the first section (at operation 810) is mapped to, or otherwiseassociated with, a first workspace, so long as a user is interactingwith the same workspace (e.g., navigating between differentcommunication channels associated with the first workspace and/or directmessages associated with the first workspace), the object can continueto be presented via the first section. However, based at least in parton detecting that the user has navigated to a second workspace that isdifferent than the first workspace, the application 140 can terminatethe presentation of the object via the first section. In at least oneexample, if the application 140 receives a request to return to thefirst workspace, the object can again be presented via the firstsection. In some examples, a location within the object can be flagged,or otherwise identified, such that when the application 140 returns tothe first workspace, the object can be presented via the first sectionat the flagged, or otherwise identified, location (e.g., so that theobject opens at the same location within the object that the user wasinteracting with prior to navigating away from the first workspace).

Same or similar techniques can be applicable for navigating betweendifferent communication channels or direct messages within a group. Forinstance, if the object presented via the first section (at operation810) is mapped to, or otherwise associated with, a first communicationchannel or first direct message, so long as a user is interacting withthe same communication channel or direct message, the object cancontinue to be presented via the first section. However, based at leastin part on detecting that the user has navigated to a secondcommunication channel or second direct message that is different thanthe first communication channel or first direct message, the application140 can terminate the presentation of the object via the first section.In at least one example, if the application 140 receives a request toreturn to the first communication channel or first direct message, theobject can again be presented via the first section. In some examples, alocation within the object can be flagged, or otherwise identified, suchthat when the application 140 returns to the first communication channelor first direct message, the object can be presented via the firstsection at the flagged, or otherwise identified, location (e.g., so thatthe object opens at the same location within the object that the userwas interacting with prior to navigating away from the firstcommunication channel or first direct message).

While operations 804-810 are described above as being performed by theapplication 140, in some examples, operations 804-810 can be performedby an additional or alternative functional component on the usercomputing device 104. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples,operations 804-810 can be performed by the integration managementcomponent 116. For example, the integration management component 116 cancause an actuation mechanism to be associated with a reference to anobject presented via a user interface of the communication platform andcan await an indication of whether an input associated with theactuation mechanism is detected. Based at least in part on receiving anindication that such an input was detected (e.g., from the usercomputing device 104), the integration management component 116 canretrieve the object, send the object to the user computing device 104,and cause the object to be presented in the first section. That is, theintegration management component 116 can provide the object to the usercomputing device 104 and the application 140 can present the object, viaa frame, for example, as described above.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example process 900 for annotating a userinterface to enable access to third-party objects associated with theuser interface, as described herein.

At operation 902, the integration management component 116 can integratea third-party platform into a communication platform, as described abovewith reference to operation 802.

At operation 904, the integration management component 116 can cause anindication of the third-party platform to be presented via a userinterface of the communication platform. In some examples, indicationsof third-party platforms integrated into the communication platform canbe presented via a user interface associated with the communicationplatform. In some examples, such indications can be presented asinformation associated with a communication channel. In some examples,such indications can be presented via another feature of such a userinterface, such as a board (e.g., a virtual space wherein dataassociated with one or more users, one or more communication channels,etc. can be aggregated), a sidebar or other section or subsection of theuser interface, or the like. In some examples, such indications can beassociated with a textual element, a graphical element, a logo, or thelike.

In some examples, integrated third-party platforms can be mapped to, orotherwise associated with, individual communication channels. That is,in some examples, based at least in part on a third-party platform beingmapped to, or otherwise associated with, a first communication channel,an indication of a third-party platform can be presented via the userinterface while data associated with a first communication channel ispresented via the user interface. However, the indication of thethird-party platform may not be presented via the user interface whiledata associated with a second communication channel is presented if thethird-party platform is not mapped to, or otherwise associated with, thesecond communication channel. In some examples, such mapping, or otherassociation, can be determined based at least in part on permissionsdata, which can be associated with individual communication channels,direct message(s), user(s), group(s) (e.g., workspace(s)), and/or thelike.

At operation 906, the application 140 can determine whether a request toidentify reference(s) to object(s) associated with the third-partyplatform is received. In some examples, a user can interact with theuser interface to request that reference(s) to object(s) that areavailable via a third-party platform are annotated to indicate such. Insome examples, a user can interact with one of the indications of athird-party platform to initiate such a request.

At operation 908, the application 140 can analyze data presented via theuser interface. In at least one example, based at least in part on arequest to identify such reference(s) to object(s) being received, theapplication 140 can analyze the data presented via the user interface todetermine whether there are any reference(s) to object(s) associatedwith the third-party platform, as illustrated at operation 910. In someexamples, such reference(s) can be associated with identifier(s) such asa uniform resource identifier or the like.

At operation 912, the application 140 can associate an actuationmechanism with the object, wherein the actuation mechanism enablesretrieval of the object for presentation via the user interface. In atleast one example, based at least in part on detecting a reference to anobject associated with the third-party platform, the application 140 cancause an actuation mechanism to be associated with the object. Theactuation mechanism can comprise a link or other mechanism that cancause the associated object to be presented via the user interface, asdescribed herein.

In some examples, if no request to identify reference(s) to object(s) isreceived (e.g., at operation 906) and/or the user interface does notinclude any reference(s) to any object(s) associated with a third-partyplatform (e.g., at operation 910), the process can return to operation904. In some examples, the process 900 can proceed from operation 902 tooperation 908 (e.g., without performing operations 904 and/or 906). Insuch examples, based at least in part on integrating a third-partyplatform into the communication platform, the application 140 canautomatically (e.g., without user input) cause reference(s) to object(s)associated with the user interface to be annotated with actuationmechanisms.

While operations 906-912 are described above as being performed by theapplication 140, in some examples, operations 906-912 can be performedby an additional or alternative functional component on the usercomputing device 104. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples,operations 906-912 can be performed by the integration managementcomponent 116. For example, the integration management component 116 candetermine whether a request is received from the user computing device104, wherein the request is to identify reference(s) to object(s) in theuser interface associated with a third-party platform. The integrationmanagement component 116 can analyze data presented via the userinterface and, if a reference to an object associated with thethird-party platform is detected, the integration management component116 can cause an actuation mechanism to be associated with the referenceto the object presented via the user interface of the communicationplatform.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example process 1000 for causing a group-basedcommunication user interface to be presented via a third-party platform,wherein functionality associated with a communication platform isintegrated into the third-party platform, as described herein.

At operation 1002, the integration management component 116 can providefunctionality for integrating a communication into a third-partyplatform. In some examples, the integration management component 116 canfacilitate integration of functionality associated with thecommunication platform into a third-party platform. In some examples,the communication platform can be integrated into a web browserexperience associated with a third-party platform. In some examples, thecommunication platform can be integrated into a third-party platform viaa small software program (e.g., an extension), as described above. Insome examples, a developer (associated with a third-party platform) caninstall such an extension into the third-party platform. In at least oneexample, the extension can cause a frame to be loaded within a webbrowser within which the third-party platform is accessible. In someexamples, the frame can access content associated with the communicationplatform and write content associated therewith into the frame. In someexamples, the communication platform can be integrated into a nativeapplication associated with the third-party platform. In some examples,the communication platform can be integrated into the third-partyplatform by embedding an embeddable browser (e.g., a webview) into anative application associated with the third-party platform. In suchexamples, the native application can use the embeddable browser todisplay web content. That is, in such examples, the native applicationcan have a browser engine embedded therein that can programmaticallyload content (e.g., third-party object(s)) in a user interface, asdescribed herein. In some examples, such content can be loaded into aframe.

At operation 1004, the integration management component 116 can cause anactuation mechanism associated with the communication platform to beassociated with a user interface of a third-party platform. In anexample where functionality associated with the communication platformis integrated into a third-party platform, a user interface of thethird-party platform, which can be presented via an application, a webbrowser, or the like, can include an actuation mechanism associated withthe communication platform. In at least one example, the integrationmanagement component 116 can cause such an actuation mechanism to bepresented.

At operation 1006, the integration management component 116 candetermine whether an input associated with the actuation mechanism isdetected. In at least one example, based at least in part on receivingan indication that an input associated with the actuation mechanism hasbeen detected, the third-party server(s) 123 can send an indication ofsuch to the server(s) 102. The integration management component 116 canreceive the indication and can cause a group-based communication userinterface to be presented within the user interface, wherein dataassociated with the third-party platform is presented in a first sectionof the user interface and the group-based communication interface ispresented via a second section of the user interface, as illustrated atoperation 1008. That is, based at least in part on receiving anindication that the actuation mechanism has been actuated, theintegration management component 116 can cause data associated with thecommunication platform to be presented via the user interface. In someexamples, such data can be presented as a group-based communication userinterface associated with the communication platform. In some examples,the group-based communication user interface can be presented via aframe (e.g., an iframe) within the user interface. In some examples,data associated with the third-party platform (e.g., an objectassociated therewith) can be presented via another frame within the userinterface. As such, a user can interact with the third-party platformand the communication platform via a same user interface (e.g., withoutleaving the third-party platform).

In some examples, the user interface can be a new user interfacepresented by the communication platform (e.g., a web applicationassociated with the communication platform can present the new userinterface). The new user interface can replace the user interface withwhich the actuation mechanism is associated. The new user interface canhave multiple sections, each which can be associated with a frame (e.g.,iframe), that can present data associated respective platforms (e.g.,the third-party platform and the communication platform). In someexamples, based at least in part on detecting an input associated with arequest to close the frame associated with the group-based communicationuser interface, the third-party platform can again present the userinterface described above at operation 1004. That is, the previous userinterface can be presented by the third-party platform.

In some examples, if no input is received and/or detected, the process1000 can return to operation 1006 to await an indication of inputassociated with the actuation mechanism.

In some examples, a state of the communication platform section can beassociated with a particular third-party page or site such that if auser navigates away from the third-party page or site when thecommunication platform section is associated with an open state, thecommunication platform section can be presented via the user interfacewhen the user returns to the same third-party page or site at a latertime. In some examples, if a third-party page or site is associated witha communication platform section associated with a closed state, thecommunication platform section may not be presented when the userreturns to the page or site.

In some examples, a communication channel or direct message can bemapped to a third-party platform and/or object. For instance, if acommunication channel or direct message is mapped to, or otherwiseassociated with, a third-party platform and/or object, so long as a useris interacting with the same third-party platform and/or object, thecommunication channel or direct message can continue to be presented viathe second section. However, based at least in part on detecting thatthe user has navigated to a different third-party platform and/or object(e.g., associated with a different domain, for example), thecommunication channel or direct message may no longer be presented viathe second section (and, in some examples, the second section may not bepresented at all). In at least one example, if the third-party platformand/or object is later accessed, the communication channel or directmessage can again be presented via the second section. In some examples,a location within communication channel or direct message can beflagged, or otherwise identified, such that when the third-partyplatform and/or object is later accessed, the communication channel ordirect message can be presented via the second section at the flagged,or otherwise identified, location (e.g., so that the communicationchannel or direct message opens at the same location within thecommunication channel or direct message that the user was interactingwith prior to navigating away from the third-party platform and/orobject).

CONCLUSION

While one or more examples of the techniques described herein have beendescribed, various alterations, additions, permutations and equivalentsthereof are included within the scope of the techniques describedherein.

In the description of examples, reference is made to the accompanyingdrawings that form a part hereof, which show by way of illustrationspecific examples of the claimed subject matter. It is to be understoodthat other examples can be used and that changes or alterations, such asstructural changes, can be made. Such examples, changes or alterationsare not necessarily departures from the scope with respect to theintended claimed subject matter. While the steps herein can be presentedin a certain order, in some cases the ordering can be changed so thatcertain inputs are provided at different times or in a different orderwithout changing the function of the systems and methods described. Thedisclosed procedures could also be executed in different orders.Additionally, various computations that are herein need not be performedin the order disclosed, and other examples using alternative orderingsof the computations could be readily implemented. In addition to beingreordered, the computations could also be decomposed intosub-computations with the same results.

Example Clauses

A: A method for interacting with an object associated with a third-partyplatform in a group-based communication platform, the method comprising:associating an actuation mechanism with a reference to the objectpresented via a user interface of the group-based communicationplatform; based at least in part on detecting an input associated withthe user interface, retrieving the object from the third-party platform;and presenting the object via the user interface, wherein one or moremessages associated with the group-based communication platform arepresented via a first section of the user interface and the object ispresented via a second section of the user interface, and wherein thefirst section and the second section are presented simultaneously andare independently interactable from within the user interface of thegroup-based communication platform.

B: The method as paragraph A recites, wherein the one or more messagesare associated with a communication channel of the group-basedcommunication platform, and the first section is representative of thecommunication channel.

C: The method as paragraph A or B recites, wherein the one or moremessages are associated with a direct message of the group-basedcommunication platform, and the first section is representative of thedirect message.

D: The method as any of paragraphs A-C recites, wherein the actuationmechanism is associated with a logo representative of the third-partyplatform.

E: The method as any of paragraphs A-D recites, wherein the object ispresented via the second section for at least one of viewing, editing,or interacting with the object.

F: The method as any of paragraphs A-E recites, wherein the secondsection is associated with a resizing mechanism, the method furthercomprising: receiving an input associated with the resizing mechanism,wherein the input associated with the resizing mechanism causes thesecond section to expand or contract within the user interface; andresizing the first section and the second section based at least in parton receiving the input associated with the resizing mechanism.

G: The method as any of paragraphs A-F recites, further comprising,based at least in part on receiving a request to extract the secondsection from the user interface, causing the second section to bepresented via a new user interface.

H: The method as any of paragraphs A-G recites, wherein the one or moremessages are associated with at least one of a communication channelassociated with a workspace or a direct message associated with theworkspace, and wherein a permission associated with at least one of thecommunication channel, the direct message, or the workspace permitsintegration of the third-party platform.

I: A system comprising: one or more processors; and one or morenon-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions that,when executed by the one or more processors, cause the system to performoperations comprising: associating an actuation mechanism with areference to an object associated with a third-party platform, whereinthe object is presented via a user interface of a group-basedcommunication platform; based at least in part on detecting an inputassociated with the user interface, causing the object to be retrievedfrom the third-party platform; and causing the object to be presentedvia the user interface, wherein one or more messages associated with thegroup-based communication platform are presented via a first section ofthe user interface and the object is presented via a second section ofthe user interface, and wherein the first section and the second sectionare presented simultaneously and are independently interactable fromwithin the user interface of the group-based communication platform.

J: The system as paragraph I recites, wherein the one or more messagesare associated with a communication channel of the group-basedcommunication platform, and the first section is representative of thecommunication channel.

K: The system as paragraph I or J recites, wherein the one or moremessages are associated with a direct message of the group-basedcommunication platform, and the first section is representative of thedirect message.

L: The system as any of paragraphs I-K recites, wherein the object ispresented via the second section for at least one of viewing, editing,or interacting with the object.

M: The system as any of paragraphs I-L recites, wherein the secondsection is associated with a resizing mechanism, the operations furthercomprising: receiving an input associated with the resizing mechanism,wherein the input associated with the resizing mechanism causes thesecond section to expand or contract within the user interface; andresizing the first section and the second section based at least in parton receiving the input associated with the resizing mechanism.

N: The system as any of paragraphs I-M recites, the operations furthercomprising, based at least in part on receiving a request to extract thesecond section from the user interface, causing the second section to bepresented via a new user interface.

O: The system as any of paragraphs I-N recites, wherein the one or moremessages are associated with at least one of a communication channelassociated with a workspace or a direct message associated with theworkspace, and wherein a permission associated with at least one of thecommunication channel, the direct message, or the workspace permitsintegration of the third-party platform.

P: One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprisinginstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processors to perform operations comprising: associating anactuation mechanism with a reference to an object associated with athird-party platform, wherein the object is presented via a userinterface of a group-based communication platform; based at least inpart on detecting an input associated with the user interface, causingthe object to be retrieved from the third-party platform; and causingthe object to be presented via the user interface, wherein one or moremessages associated with the group-based communication platform arepresented via a first section of the user interface and the object ispresented via a second section of the user interface, and wherein thefirst section and the second section are presented simultaneously andare independently interactable from within the user interface of thegroup-based communication platform.

Q: The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as paragraph Precites, wherein the input is associated with the actuation mechanism,and wherein the object is presented via the second section for at leastone of viewing, editing, or interacting with the object.

R: The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as paragraph Por Q recites, wherein the one or more messages are associated with (i) acommunication channel of the group-based communication platform, and thefirst section is representative of the communication channel, or (ii)wherein the one or more messages are associated with a direct message ofthe group-based communication platform, and the first section isrepresentative of the direct message.

S: The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as any ofparagraphs P-R recites, the operations further comprising, based atleast in part on receiving a request to extract the second section fromthe user interface, causing the second section to be presented via a newuser interface.

T: The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as any ofparagraphs P-S recites, wherein the one or more messages are associatedwith at least one of a communication channel associated with a workspaceor a direct message associated with the workspace, and

wherein a permission associated with at least one of the communicationchannel, the direct message, or the workspace permits integration of thethird-party platform.

U. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as any ofparagraphs P-T recites, wherein the one or more messages are associatedwith at least one of a communication channel associated with a workspaceor a direct message associated with the workspace, the operationsfurther comprising: receiving a request to access a differentcommunication channel associated with the workspace or a differentdirect message associated with the workspace; updating data presentedvia the first section based at least in part on receiving the request;and maintaining, based at least in part on a determination that thedifferent communication channel or the different direct message isassociated with the workspace, presentation of the object via the secondsection.

V. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as any ofparagraphs P-T recites, wherein the one or more messages are associatedwith a first workspace, the method further comprising: receiving arequest to access a second workspace; and ceasing, based at least inpart on a determination that the second workspace is different than thefirst workspace, presentation of the second section.

W. A method comprising: providing functionality for integrating agroup-based communication platform into a third-party platform; causingan actuation mechanism associated with the group-based communicationplatform to be associated with a user interface of the third-partyplatform; and based at least in part on detecting an input associatedwith the actuation mechanism, causing a group-based communicationinterface to be presented within the user interface, wherein dataassociated with the third-party platform is presented via a firstsection within the user interface and the group-based communicationinterface is presented via a second section within the user interface,and wherein the first section and the second section are presented at asame time and are independently interactable.

X. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprisinginstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processors to perform operations comprising: providingfunctionality for integrating a group-based communication platform intoa third-party platform; causing an actuation mechanism associated withthe group-based communication platform to be associated with a userinterface of the third-party platform; and based at least in part ondetecting an input associated with the actuation mechanism, causing agroup-based communication interface to be presented within the userinterface, wherein data associated with the third-party platform ispresented via a first section within the user interface and thegroup-based communication interface is presented via a second sectionwithin the user interface, and wherein the first section and the secondsection are presented at a same time and are independently interactable.

Y. A system comprising: one or more processors; and one or morenon-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions that,when executed by the one or more processors, cause the system to performoperations comprising: providing functionality for integrating agroup-based communication platform into a third-party platform; causingan actuation mechanism associated with the group-based communicationplatform to be associated with a user interface of the third-partyplatform; and based at least in part on detecting an input associatedwith the actuation mechanism, causing a group-based communicationinterface to be presented within the user interface, wherein dataassociated with the third-party platform is presented via a firstsection within the user interface and the group-based communicationinterface is presented via a second section within the user interface,and wherein the first section and the second section are presented at asame time and are independently interactable.

While the example clauses described above are described with respect toone particular implementation, it should be understood that, in thecontext of this document, the content of the example clauses can also beimplemented via a method, device, system, a computer-readable medium,and/or another implementation. Additionally, any of examples A-Y may beimplemented alone or in combination with any other one or more of theexamples A-Y.

1. A method for interacting with a message associated with a group-basedcommunication platform from a third-party application, the methodcomprising: presenting an affordance associated with the group-basedcommunication platform via a user interface of the third-partyapplication; based at least in part on detecting an input associatedwith the affordance, retrieving at least the message from thegroup-based communication platform, wherein the message at least one oforiginated from or was imported from the group-based communicationplatform; and presenting the message via the user interface of thethird-party application, wherein one or more messages associated withthe group-based communication platform, including the message, arepresented via the user interface of the third-party application.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the one or more messages are presented inassociation with a group-based communication user interface of thegroup-based communication platform.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinthe one or more messages are associated with a channel of thegroup-based communication platform.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinthe one or more messages are associated with a direct message of thegroup-based communication platform.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereinthe user interface is partitioned into a plurality of sections, whereinthe one or more messages are presented in a first section of theplurality of sections, and wherein data associated with the third-partyapplication is presented via a second section of the plurality ofsections.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first section and thesecond section are presented simultaneously and are independentlyinteractable from within the user interface of the third-partyapplication.
 7. The method of claim 5, further comprising: receiving asecond input associated with the first section of the user interface;and causing a new message associated with the second input to bepresented via the first section of the user interface and a group-basedcommunication user interface associated with the group-basedcommunication platform.
 8. A system comprising: one or more processors;and one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storinginstructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, causethe system to perform operations comprising: presenting an affordanceassociated with a group-based communication platform via a userinterface of a third-party application; based at least in part ondetecting an input associated with the affordance, retrieving at least amessage from the group-based communication platform, wherein the messageat least one of originated from or was imported from the group-basedcommunication platform; and presenting the message via the userinterface of the third-party application, wherein one or more messagesassociated with the group-based communication platform, including themessage, are presented via the user interface of the third-partyapplication.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more messagesare presented in association with a group-based communication userinterface of the group-based communication platform.
 10. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the one or more messages are associated with a channelof the group-based communication platform.
 11. The system of claim 8,wherein the one or more messages are associated with a direct message ofthe group-based communication platform.
 12. The system of claim 8,wherein the user interface is partitioned into a plurality of sections,wherein the one or more messages are presented in a first section of theplurality of sections, and wherein data associated with the third-partyapplication is presented via a second section of the plurality ofsections.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first section and thesecond section are presented simultaneously and are independentlyinteractable from within the user interface of the third-partyapplication.
 14. The system of claim 12, the operations furthercomprising: receiving a second input associated with the first sectionof the user interface; and causing a new message associated with thesecond input to be presented via the first section of the user interfaceand a group-based communication user interface associated with thegroup-based communication platform.
 15. One or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed by oneor more processors, cause the one or more processors to performoperations comprising: presenting an affordance associated with agroup-based communication platform via a user interface of a third-partyapplication; based at least in part on detecting an input associatedwith the affordance, retrieving at least a message from the group-basedcommunication platform, wherein the message at least one of originatedfrom or was imported from the group-based communication platform; andpresenting the message via the user interface of the third-partyapplication, wherein one or more messages associated with thegroup-based communication platform, including the message, are presentedvia the user interface of the third-party application.
 16. The one ormore non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the oneor more messages are presented in association with a group-basedcommunication user interface of the group-based communication platform.17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15,wherein the one or more messages are associated with a channel or adirect message of the group-based communication platform.
 18. The one ormore non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein theuser interface is partitioned into a plurality of sections, wherein theone or more messages are presented in a first section of the pluralityof sections, and wherein data associated with the third-partyapplication is presented via a second section of the plurality ofsections.
 19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media ofclaim 18, wherein the first section and the second section are presentedsimultaneously and are independently interactable from within the userinterface of the third-party application.
 20. The one or morenon-transitory computer-readable media of claim 18, the operationsfurther comprising: receiving a second input associated with the firstsection of the user interface; and causing a new message associated withthe second input to be presented via the first section of the userinterface and a group-based communication user interface associated withthe group-based communication platform.